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Open Access 01-12-2023 | Checkpoint Inhibitors | Research

Hepatocellular carcinoma immune prognosis score predicts the clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors

Authors: Rujia Zhang, Haoran Zhao, Peng Wang, Zuoming Guo, Chunxun Liu, Zhaowei Qu

Published in: BMC Cancer | Issue 1/2023

Abstract

Objective

The predictive biomarkers of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) still need to be further explored. This study aims to establish a new immune prognosis biomarker to predict the clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Methods

The subjects of this study were 151 HCC patients receiving ICIs at Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital from January 2018 to December 2021. This study collected a wide range of blood parameters from patients before treatment and used Cox’s regression analysis to identify independent prognostic factors in blood parameters, as well as their β coefficient. The hepatocellular carcinoma immune prognosis score (HCIPS) was established through Lasso regression analysis and COX multivariate analysis. The cut-off value of HCIPS was calculated from the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Finally, the prognostic value of HCIPS was validated through survival analysis, stratified analyses, and nomograms.

Results

HCIPS was composed of albumin (ALB) and thrombin time (TT), with a cut-off value of 0.64. There were 56 patients with HCIPS < 0.64 and 95 patients with HCIPS ≥ 0.64, patients with low HCIPS were significantly related to shorter progression-free survival (PFS) (13.10 months vs. 1.63 months, P < 0.001) and overall survival (OS) (14.83 months vs. 25.43 months, P < 0.001). HCIPS has also been found to be an independent prognostic factor in this study. In addition, the stratified analysis found a significant correlation between low HCIPS and shorter OS in patients with tumor size ≥ 5 cm (P of interaction = 0.032). The C-index and 95% CI of the nomograms for PFS and OS were 0.730 (0.680–0.779) and 0.758 (0.711–0.804), respectively.

Conclusions

As a new score established based on HCC patients receiving ICIs, HCIPS was significantly correlated with clinical outcomes in patients with ICIs and might serve as a new biomarker to predict HCC patients who cloud benefit from ICIs.

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Title: Hepatocellular carcinoma immune prognosis score predicts the clinical outcomes of hepatocellular carcinoma patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors
Authors: Rujia Zhang
Haoran Zhao
Peng Wang
Zuoming Guo
Chunxun Liu
Zhaowei Qu
Publication date: 01-12-2023
Publisher: BioMed Central
Keywords: Checkpoint Inhibitors
Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Biomarkers
Published in: BMC Cancer / Issue 1/2023
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2407
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-023-11678-5

Webinar | 19-02-2024 | 17:30 (CET)

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on antibody–drug conjugates in cancer

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Antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) are novel agents that have shown promise across multiple tumor types. Explore the current landscape of ADCs in breast and lung cancer with our experts, and gain insights into the mechanism of action, key clinical trials data, existing challenges, and future directions.

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Conclusions

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